Researchers at the University of Chicago recently reported that belief in God is highest among old people and may be linked to concerns over their own death, Reuters reported.

They found belief tended to increase with age and that people over the age of 68 were most likely to profess belief in God, with 43 percent saying they were certain God exists.

“Looking at differences among age groups, the largest increases in belief in God most often occur among those 58 years of age and older,” according to a statement from researcher Tom Smith. “This suggests that belief in God is especially likely to increase among the oldest groups, perhaps in response to the increasing anticipation of mortality.”

Smith’s team used surveys spanning nearly 20 years and 30 countries. Rates of belief were higher among Americans; 81 percent surveyed said they had believed in God throughout their lives, the story said.

There are stained glass windows in my Church honoring the 11 Apostles that followed JESUS CHRIST. Did you know that only one died a natural death. John.

The Bible says JESUS gave what I call “The Mama Duty” to The Apostle John from The Cross. “Woman behold thy Son , Son, behold thy Mother.” John, the Writer of Revelations took the Mother of JESUS, Mary, into his home from that day. He died of old age after his duty was done.

Now let’s talk about the other 10 guys. They went all over the known world proclaiming the resurrected JESUS CHRIST as they saw HIM, spoke with HIM and ate with HIM at least three times after his “death” on the Cross at Golgotha. One doubted who was aabsent at the first appearance, and JESUS had him stick his hand into his side where the Roman stabbed him with a Spear and touch his nail holed hands and feet at the second. The authorities tried to silence the 10 Apostles everywhere they went because they were afraid of how many “idiots” they might convince. NONE would be silenced…so the authorities violently killed ALL of them in one way or another…For example, Peter was crucified, but asked to be crucified upside down as he did not believe he deserved to die in the same manner as JESUS CHRIST.

Scott, tell us what you think these eleven men saw…that, according to your “belief,” made them such idiots or stupid to to violently die for nothing.
Or, was it that they died for following THE LORD’s orders to spread the word …from SOMEONE they saw after “death” and soon it was too late for the authorities to stop it…

I hope you have time to think about it. We are not guaranteed tomorrow

Well, I can see that neither you or the people who did this research goes to Church…. For if you all did you might find that the research might be a little bit off…. If we did not have all of the young people in the Church then they Church would die instead of growing like it is….

“As atheist activist Christopher Hitchens neared the end of his life battling cancer, he famously stuck to his nonbelief and did not turn to God for comfort, unlike many aging Americans approaching death.”
….
How does anyone know what is in a dying man’s thoughts? Why would someone assume that Hitchens didn’t convert on his death bed? There are no atheist’s in foxholes.

Hitchens anticipated this specific sort of argument from theists following his death. He was quite clear during the time leading up to his death — when he was lucid and could communicate — that he was not going to have a deathbed conversion. Quoting Hitchens, “It’s a religious falsification that people like myself scream for a priest at the end,” Hitchens said before he was diagnosed with stage four esophageal cancer in the summer of 2010. “Most of us go to our end with dignity.”

The fact that Kate has posted your comment without addressing it is one of the reasons this is one of the better blogs on the Chronicle website. She lets the blog posts speak for themselves without trying to direct the ensuing conversational towards her own points of view, like almost every other religion blog I’ve come across (with one blog of particular note here on the Chron).

I find great comfort in knowing that after my life I will simply not exist. Which will be the same as the darkness that preceded my life. I used to get stressed out about all of the years and events that happened before I came into being. Then, I became comfortable with it. From there, I became comfortable with nonexistence after my life time as well. I will return to the familiar, rather than having to worry about some after life.

As we age, we realize that there is a lot more sand at the bottom of the hourglass and as we approach eternity, we want to make sure that our destination is secure. That’s why I have believed on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. I will be in Heaven for eternity, and that’s a long, long, time.

While my reaction to that is complex, at any rate I can’t help but wonder why more anti-abortion volunteer protesters don’t spend any time at all volunteering at orphanages and other shelters for the parentless, instead?

7 billion people on this planet aren’t enough, even as they don’t have enough time to volunteer for those already born? All in the name of religion…